Display holder



H. s. FORD DISPLAY HOLDER Dec. 28, 1937,

'Filed Feb. 9, 1957 IOL f1 nm Mm., e

' Patented Dec. 28, 1937 UNITED STATES PZT E NT This invention relatesto display holders and particularly to display holders of the type madeuse of by merchants in displaying for sale stacks of articles such asneckties and socks.

It is generally customary .in merchandising articles of this class toarrange the socks or ties, or light articles, in groups of a commo-nsize, common style or common price, and it is highly advantageous toprevent intermingling of articles of dlerent groups, which, unlessprecautions are observed, frequently occurs accidently when` thearticles are inspected or handled by prospective customers. It has beenproposed that the several groups orpiles of ties and the like may bemaintained separate bythe use of individual holders for such groups andone form of holder made use of for this purpose comprises a simple flatbase member, having a surface upon which'a pile or stack of articles maybe disposed and retaining guards forl laterally confining the pile. Ithas been found, however, that While a stack of articles,

i for instance socks, When originally placed in position will present aneat and attractive appearanceto prospective customers, the pile orstack of articlesv Will not be adequately retained in position by any ofthe restraining devices now commonly use'dand that they will slide fromthe display devices unless such devices are provided with restrainingImeans which so envelop the socks that the attractiveness of the displayis markedly decreased. It is the purpose of .the present invention toprovide a display holder of simple while the articles displayed may beremoved singly from time to time until the holder is empty, a suitablelegend, which may be a manufacturers name or slogan, price mark, grademark, or other information for a prospective purchaser, is at all 00times placed permanently upon the upper surface of the uppermost articlein the stack retained upon the holder. It has heretofore been foundalmost impossible to maintain suitable identifying legends closelyassociated with stacks of such articles in holders of the classdescribed.

In accordance with the present invention, ,however, this may be easilydone and the advantages flowing from this feature of the invention willbe apparent to all who are called upon to make use of such devices.

A preferred form of the invention will be disclosed by way of example,this form being fully illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in whichFigure l is a perspective View of a display holder embodying theinvention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same; and

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view, partially in section, of a displayholder having a somewhat modified form of article retaining means.

The display holder illustrated is in many particulars of conventionaltype comprising a base il) which is preferably of light weight as whenfabricated of wood and which may have any desired outline. I'he base i@shown is primarily intended for the reception of a pile of socks such asindicated at El, and has a reduced end iii having a width only slightlygreater than the top of a folded sock the remainder of the base beingsomewhat wider, and the end of the larger portion remote from thereduced portion It having some ornamental configuration, such asindicated at |02.

Guard members are indicated at i2, these guard members being fabricatedof wire and being generally U-shaped, the ends of the wire beinginserted in suitable apertures provided for their reception in the Vbasemember l. The guard members are intended to prevent sliding ofindividual socks, or of Vthe pile of socks, ofi of the base member, anddo to a substantial extent. However, as pointed out beorathe guards i2cannot in and of themselves Wholly prevent this sliding movement ordisplacement and it is not possible to wholly surround theA pile ofsocks with guards since the articles cannot in such cases be asadvantageously displayed.

In accordance with the present invention an additional member isprovided for positively retaining the pile of articles upon the displayholder. While this additional member maybe formed in various ways, itmay conveniently comprise a generally U-shaped member I3, fabricated forinstance of Wire, the free ends of the member being inturned and looselyreceived within apertures formed in the base l0 so that the member maybe said to be pivotally attached to the base for rocking movement aboutan axis just below and parallel to the upper, or article receiving,surface of the base. Member i3 may be s aid to have two generallyparallel leg portions I3' and a transverse midportion |32 connecting theleg portions, the transverse portion I 32 being preferably formed as aloop and the Vplane of the loop being disposed at a slight angle to theplane of the leg portions, as shown in Figure 2. Means is preferablyprovided for retaining the looped portion |32 of member I3 in theposition in which it is shown in Figures 1 and 2, i. e., this portionresting upon the upper surface of the uppermost article of a stack ofarticles resting upon the base III. The loop is so disposed angularlywith respect to the leg portions I3 that it preferably liessubstantially horl- Zontally upon the upper article. The loop |32 alsocomprises a suitable base for the attachment of an advertising placardsuch as indicated at I4 the attachment being made in any suitable mannerand upon the placard, which may be a piece of pasteboard or the like,may bewritten any suitable advertising indicia, grade marks, sizenumbers or other information of interest to the merchant or prospectivepurchasers.

The advertising placard will remain substantially parallel to the base I3 during the time that the device is in use although its angularity willchange somewhat with the height of the pile of articles upon which itrests. It will be appreciated that advertising cards of various typesmay be used and that they may be secured to the loop |32 in variousways, also that the cross member |32 may be so disposed as to makesubstantially a right angle with the base at all times instead of beingsubstantially parallel, considerable variation of the invention in thisrespect being permissible in order that the wishes of various users ofthe display holder may be met.

Preferably means is provided for maintaining close contact of theportion |32 of the member I3 with the uppermost article of the pack. Inthe form of the invention shown in Figures 1 and 2 resilient springs aremade use of for this purpose, one such spring being indicated at I5.Spring I5 has one end I5 attached to the base I9, its opposite end |52attached to the adjacent leg I3 of member I3 and its intermediateportion coiled about the inturned portion of leg i3. Springs I5 serve tomaintain loop |32 in rather tight contact with the uppermost ar' ticleof the pile II so that the pile is firmly retained in position upon thebase I3. If desired the customary guard members I2 may be dispensed withsince the swinging member I3 will adequately retain a substantial pileof articles upon the base Iil without the assistance of stationaryguards. It is of course easy to remove any one of the stack of articlesby simply rocking the member I3 upwardly about its pivotal axis torelease Vthe same. The member I3, however, is pressed downwardly withsufficient force to render it dicult to remove an articlesurreptitiously and without lifting the same, thus discouraging theft orunauthorized removal.

If desired, means may be provided for more positively securing member I3in article retaining position, for instance the lower ends of the legsI3 may be provided with loops or eyes I6 which encircle the shank of abolt Il' positioned Within a cylindrical aperture formed in the baseIll. Bolt I1 is provided at one'end with a head Il and its other endisthreaded at |12, a wing nut I8 having threaded engagement with hethreaded end of the bolt.

Upon tightening of the wing nut IB, the ends I6 of member I3 are tightlygripped by the bolt head I1 and the wing nut I3 respectively, beingforced against the adjacent faces of the base Ill. Member I3 istherefore frictonally retained in position and no article may beconveniently re moved without loosening of the wing nut I8. If desiredmeans for positively locking member I3 in article engaging position maybe adopted but in the average case such positive locking means is notnecessary.

Obviously the swinging retaining member I3 may be pivotally attached toeither end of the base IG and, as has been previously explained, itsexact shape and the material from which it is fabricated may be variedto suit circumstances.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a display holder for ties, socks, or similar articles, incombination, a base member having a surface for supporting a stack ofarticles, a bail formed of a single, continuous generally U- shaped Wireor rod, the open end of the U being pivoted to said base about an axissubstantially.

parallel to and below said surface, the free end of said bail having areentrant bight, the said bight lying in a plane at an angle to theplane of said U, a fiat plate secured to and filling said bight, saidbight and plate being adapted to contact with and lie at upon theuppermost article of a stack resting on said base.

2. In a display holder for ties, socks, or the like, in combination, abase of similar size and conguration as the articles and having asurface for supporting a stack of such articles, stationary guards atthe lateral edges of said base extending vertically upwardly therefrom,a bail pivoted to said base about an axis substantially parallel to andbelow said surface, said bail passing between and guided by at least oneset of oppositely disposed stationary guards, the free end of said bailhaving means to support a plate at an angle to the rest of the bail torest substantially flat upon the topmost article in a stack.

HARRY STACY FORD.

